Right now, with at least 32% of our city’s general fund going towards criminalization and punishment, the only guarantee is that Seattle’s most marginalized and vulnerable residents lack the resources needed to survive. Our city’s current budget allocations guarantee continued suffering in the form of sweeps of our unhoused neighbors, and repeated arrests, court dates, and nights in the deadly King County Jail for Black and brown communities, queer and trans folks, people with disabilities, and poor people in general.

We believe true safety comes from guaranteeing that people’s material needs are met. Every person in Seattle should have what they need to survive and thrive. We reject a system that sorts people into categories of deserving and undeserving and assigns resources accordingly. We reject eligibility requirements for essential goods and services that require people to prove they’re deserving of what they need to live and are used to criminalize and exclude the people most in need. We reject the use of the criminal legal system as an entry point to meeting basic needs. Instead, we call for a city budget that guarantees our collective well-being without conditions. Our budget advocacy will focus on fighting to win the Solidarity Guarantees. We will evaluate any proposed budgets on how much closer they get us to achieving universal, accessible, and decommodified services.

We demand the City of Seattle provide the residents of our city with basic guarantees that provide a base standard of living and quality of life for all people in Seattle. The city has prioritized punishment as a means to attempt to mitigate social issues, when services and access to resources are what have been proven to not only mitigate, but remediate circumstances that currently lead to contact with police and the punishment system. Below is a list of Nine Essential Guarantees the community has developed.

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